The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1887-09-17
Special Notices.
NITIZENS' INDEPENDENT
" MOVEMENT
Address to the Voters of Bal
timOre County.


~ MOVEMENT.
Address to the Voters of Bal
timOre County.
Before the noise and confusion of the mob gath
ering, styled the democratic Convention" which
assembled in our Court House, July 25th, had
died away, determined expressions of dssatisfac-
ton with both the mode and results of the conven
ton work were heard on all sides.
Despite the fraud, corrupting influences and
ruffianism attending the primary meetings, quite
q number of reputable and loyal Democrats were in
the convention; but that element of the party
against which the better part had so long contend
ed was in the ascendency, and, backed by howl
ing mob of hired rowdies, all idea pretense of
deliberation or propriety of conduct on the part
of the official body was precluded.
THE SORENESS AND DISGUST
apparent on the day of the convention was not of
the transient kind, so often following the nomina-
tion of a Democratic ticket,but was more feeling
of shame and disappointment that our party had
been so degraded by the selfish few who could not
remain in that retirement to which the people had
previously voted them. So far from abating,
that feeling has increased from the day of the
convention to the present time. There was no
Observation-Disclosures" about it, and the Democrats who
have assembled from time to time to consider the
necessity for ignoring the irregular work of this
most irregular convention, which nominated the
ticket presumptuously styled the Regular Ticket"
have not been "soreheads" in any sense of the
term. They men fairly representing the in
telligence, loyalty, honesty and higher standards
of the party men who care less for office than for
principle, fairness, and honest methods in politics,
and, having acted honorably in submitting Dem
ocratic ticket for the support of all in favor of
good and honest government, it becomes the duty
of their executive committee to submit to the pub
lie some of the many reasons which have induced
this action.
ONE WORD ABOUT KIcKERS
may be proper, although the time for reproach for
this little sin has really passed away when we see
the most active kickers taken up by the most regu
lar of Democrats and both elected and appointed to
the highest and most responsible positions In
fact, the present chairman of the State executive
committee and the present Mayor of Baltimore,
both of whom fill their positions by the grace of
Mr.. German, were both most lively kickers quite
lately.
There is neither logic nor good sense in the
widely accepted dogma of political faith, to witt
When men engage in primary contest and in
convention work, they are bound to stand by the
results of the primary and the nominations made
by the convention so chosen. Such truth may
apply when man goes into primary in personal
fight for Office and all things fairly conducted
but when men are contending for a principle or a
set Of principles and 60 into the primaries to have
the same INDICATED, common honesty, good sense
and sound logic require that they should carry
these same principles into the general election,
and there vote their honest sentiments though
such vote may be against the men selected as
candidates through the machinery of the primary
and convention in which the voter participated.
If man is not fit to be voted for in the primary,
he is not fit to vote for after that primary; If
"bosses," rings and clques good things to
oppose in the primaries, they are better things to
oppose in the general election.
THE PRIMARY MEETINGS,
controlled as they have been for some years, have
been looked upon by all thoughtful voters as a
mere farce, and are, to-day, growing sore eating
into the vtals of our party. Executive committee
men have been chosen, not because of their fitness
to manage the affairs of the party in an intelligent
and impartial manner, but because of their loyal
ty to particular individual or clique of persons
who desire to get into Office themselves or put in
office such of their friends as they may be able to
control.
Anything like fairness in these meetings de-
ponds entirely upon the intelligence, honesty and
impartialty of the judges selected by the commit
tee to manage them. The executive committee
men in many of the districts, being careless of the
good of the party, and even more Indifferent to
any political principle, and being anxious only
for the success of their friends the faction of
belong, select for judges the most inscriptions
partisans they can get. In our late primaries
some of these judges were selected because they
could promise in advance just what majority their
precincts should give; and they were known to
have nerve enough to count the promised MAORI
ties upon the close of their polls Such results were
accomplished by stufing ballot boxes, improper
determinations amongst voters, "bull-dozing,"
fraudulent additions and scores of other dishonest
nethods known Onlv Tn the initiated.
These methods were never more shamelessy
and generally resorted to than in the late prima-
ries in our county.
THE USE OF MONEY
for corrupting purposes in the primary contests
by those who have it, without sense of honor to
control its use, and by those who could control it
through their inauenee ~itA we~itAy candidates.
for State nominations, and political rings that
fatten upon bribery and corruption, was never
carried to such an extent in this county as in
late primaries. This great evil in politics has
been growing in our midst until it has reached a
pass when poor man, however fit for office, or
conscientious man who deplores the corruption
and bribery of voters, can no longer hope to sue
coed in primary meeting. With the latter, it is
an impossibility and with the former, success is
only attainable by sale of himself to some po-
litical "boss," or complete surrender Of all his
manhood to some political ring that hopes to
thrive by some undisclosed means upon the taxes
paid by honest men.
Over S20, 900 was used-or, rather, appropria-
ted-as corruption fund for the use of the win
ming faction of the party in our primaries this
summer, independent of private means expended
by candidates, one individual giving as much as
50, 500 for this abominabe purpose in single dis
trict. Candidates who were comparatively poor,
spent their all. Money was openly and freely
used about the polling places, and tickets given
out with two, five, ten and as high as twenty dol
~ IN thap, Tn
trict, which was carried by a majority of one or
two votes only, prominent politician and judge
of election publicly boasts they bought eighteen 1
colored votes and voted one of them on the name
of man who had been dead over two years. In
another district, more ballots were taken out than
stuffing the ballot-box. An honest and fair cleo
tion in these two districts would have changed
the complexion ofthe convention, and some of the
most Objectionable candidates would not have
been before the convention at all.
THE CONVENTION.
The faction which had succeeded by such means
by bribery in one district, by barefaced and
patent fraud in another-went into the Court
House at Towsontown, followed by bowling
mob composed largely of rufians and convicts,
with ticket cut and dried, a "slate" fixed up at
the dictation of the Boss, and containing nam es
of men only whose honor was pledged to do the
will of the Boss and his faction. Amid the jost-
ling, yelling, Kissing, cursing crowd of "heelers"
one of whom even attacked and assaulted dele
gate upon the floor of the Convention, the said
"slate," with one or two exceptions, was "put
through"
In such pandemonium-wherep protests were
scarcely heard and less regarded-the ticket
which Democrats are asked to support because it
is Irregular" is alleged to have been nominated!
Nor were the scenes and incidents of the gath
ering more disgusting to decency than insulting
to the rights of Manhood and subversive of every
precedent and principle of the Democratic party.
The arrogance of Boss and faction was almost
past belief. When the name of gentleman and
Democrat who had carried his district and was
supported by some four others was attempted to
be put in nomination, they refused to permit the
name to 60 before the convention. He and his
friends were stifed and gagged, and, with reck-
less disregard of all rights, the candidate of the
Boss faction was declared to be nominated by ac-
clamation! And when, forsooth, some fair-minded
delegate dared to protest, he was told publicly by